Castlebridge man ordered to pay well driller €15,000

JUDGE DESCRIBES RESPONDENT AS ‘MISCHIEVOUS AND UNTRUTHFUL’

THE DIFFICULTIES of well driller Lorcan O’Donohoe t/a Lorcan O’Donohoe Water Pumps, Courteencurragh, Gorey in being paid by a Castlebridge client were aired at the monthly civil sitting of Wexford District Court.

O’Donohoe resorted to legal action against Neil Reidy of Glasganny, Castlebridge with his claim for the €15,000 he felt was owed for sinking a water well and five holes to serve a geo-thermal heating system at the site of the house which his customer was building.

Judge John Cheatle was not happy with the way that the case was met, describing Reidy at the end of the hearing as mischievous and untruthful after granting the plaintiff a decree for the amount sought.

Lorcan O’Donohoe told the court that he took over the running of the family well drilling and water pump business three years ago.

He recalled how he was telephoned by Reidy to carry out work at the site and he quoted €7 (plus VAT) per foot drilled.

His evidence continued: Over 15 working days, he and his experienced assistant Austin Clyne sank five geo-thermal wells to a depth of 400 feet and a water well 240 feet deep.

The work cost around €6,000 in diesel alone, plus liners and casings, and he felt that Reidy was satisfied with the work, which was completed last summer.

However, when he presented his bill for more than €17,000, he was told that the budget for the work was €10,000.

In order to have the matter considered by the District Court, he dropped his claim to €15,000.

‘We have not been paid one penny,’ O’Donohoe told the court. ‘We haven’t had one cent. We worked damned hard and got the job done. We did over and above, and we haven’t been paid.’

In response, Reidy described the plaintiff as incompetent and indicated that he intended to bring a counter-claim to the Circuit Court.

His wife Elizabeth and his son Sean were both present in court and both gave brief testimony.

After hearing the evidence, the judge ruled that the invoice presented to Reidy was reasonable.

In allowing O’Donohoe his decree for €15,000, the court was effectively giving the respondent a significant discount.

On the other hand, he was ordered to pay the legal costs of the plaintiff who had solicitor Brendan Curran present to represent him.

After the decision had been made, Neil Reidy raised the issue of press coverage of the matter at a previous sitting when the case was adjourned.

The judge responded that he was not getting into this issue but did recall that a certificate of sickness was handed in on behalf of Mr Reidy.

Reidy indicated that he intended seeking defamation costs.

Judge Cheatle stated that he had found him to be an untruthful witness and a mischievous litigant.